Goats, Ghosts, and Records! The news has been filled with references of goats, ghosts, and records for the last two weeks or so. Those news articles did not have to do with any agricultural report or coverage of events around Halloween, but with the two teams involved in the World Series. Most of those accounts were given in reference to the history of the Chicago Cubs. How many times since the post-season began have we heard the number, “108” or the year, 1945 and 1948? At the end of game 4 of this year’s World Series, the echo of the goat’s hooves could seemingly be heard on the pavement of Addison Street in Chicago as the Cubs fell back to the verge of elimination! The ghosts of Wrigley seemed to be circling around the north side of the city again! However, this year, history is not repeating itself of the same old story of a disappointing end of the season, but is beginning to take on a different tone as the Cubs have finally become major league baseball’s champions! That which some thought was impossible, whether for this year or for any year, has now become the sensational news of reality! The emotional impact upon Cub fans has also been huge! The excitement throughout Wrigleyville could be heard all the way to Lake Michigan . and around the world as Cub fans watched the television broadcast or listened to Pat Hughes on the radio! Young fans that are the same age as those “20-something” stars of the game just immersed themselves in the excitement of the home-team winning the major league championship. The middle-aged and even some nearing retirement had tears in their eyes as they recounted the seasons of being brought to the brink of success---only to once again suffer the agony of defeat. It was touching to see many wearing Cubs t-shirts and hats in honor of a long-time-fan they knew that had already passed away. My mother was one of those faithful Cubs fans who would listen on radio to the play-by-play calls of Jack Quinlan and Vince Lloyd. Now, the goat is gone. The ghosts of the Northside have lost their fearsomeness. The old unwanted record of 108 years since a championship has been broken. There is a new feeling. There is the promise of a new era even in the presence of the “bump” of upcoming player free-agency. The billy goat curse was supposedly started in the 1945 World Series in Chicago. As William Sianis started to enter Wrigley Field in Game 4 of the Series, he was denied entrance because of his goat that he was trying to bring along. In his disgust, Sianis claimed the Cubs would not win that game nor the series. Those who believe in superstition have accepted that situation as having placed a curse upon the Cubs for 71 years. Whether you accept the billy goat “curse” or the variety of scapegoats pointed at over the years, there has not been a shortage of claims as to why the franchise has been so long in winning a league or World Series championship. Some of those scapegoats have actually been players on the team, or managers, or even fans who interfered in the game. Scapegoats are usually someone else or something else to blame for our own failure to win or to perform like we had hoped. The Bible introduces the principle of the scapegoat in Leviticus 16:5. The scapegoat was to have the sins of the nation confessed over his head and then turned loose in the wilderness. This was a picture of the sins of the nation being taken away to never be seen again. Our human race seems to commonly look for a scapegoat upon which to place the reason for our own failures. In God’s eternal plan He has provided for us to have a substitute to bear the penalty for our failure of being righteous. Jesus Christ successfully fulfilled all the requirements on the cross of Calvary for being admitted into the blessedness of Heaven. Any other attempt at trying to gain admittance will come up short and end in failure. Any time there is a championship in any sport, there is going to be a lot of noting records that have accumulated over the years or are just now being established. After going down 3-1 in the Series, the Cubs found themselves trying to be one of just a handful of teams over the history of organized professional baseball that have been able to come back and win the World Series. During the games it seemed as if the statisticians were keeping records of even the most trivial of accomplishments, but there is a record book that no one will want to miss. In Revelation 20:12 the Bible says that the books will be opened to see whose names are written in the Book of Life. This will be the record of all who have trusted Christ as Savior. This is the record book that supersedes all other records. No matter what else you may accomplish in life, make sure you know Jesus Christ as your personal Savior. It’s the only record that will matter for eternity! Pastor Cowan has been the pastor of First Baptist Church of Rochelle since 2001. For more information, please go to www.firstbaptistrochelle.org and listen to WRHL 1060 Sunday morning services at 11:00 am. .